Family is Everything
by Cabba
Summary: The seriously long awaited reunion of Harry and Percy. Harry's fourth year and Percy's third quest can't start without a bang, can it? There are hated prophecies, understanding mysteries and discovering entire worlds. In the midst of all the new and old realizations that will happen, don't let go of each other... family is everything. AU. Pumki series. Mostly Canon.
1. Found Him

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the Harry Potter or Percy Jackson series. Any copyright infringement is unintended. Any reference to other fictional or non-fictional works like books, movies, documentaries and others might occur, although there is no claim established over them. Mentions of real personalities are not considered true. This is pure fan-fiction and is published only for the sake of entertainment.**

**Listening to – Other Side of Down by David Archuleta**

**Words – 3638**

* * *

**Recap – Harry finds two people in the Surrey forest. That's not right!  
Annabeth finds herself being swept away in a wave along with Percy to…**

…

Annabeth felt her voice being lost in the torrent of water engulfing her and cutting off her breath. She stopped breathing, shut her eyes and held on to Percy. She didn't know what was actually happening. One moment they had been standing on the ocean water, with Percy's help, holding his hands…

She had been holding his hands only because she was sure that if she had let go, she would've have fallen. That had been the only reason.

So get that thought out of your heads.

The sound of gurgling water lessened and Annabeth gasped as they fell a few feet. She lost her grip on Percy and inhaled fresh non-salty air. Her feet hit the ground and she crumpled next to what felt like a tree.

Taking another breath, she opened her eyes. She felt a slightly muddy and leafy ground, beneath her back. A large tree loomed over her, its leaves shivering in the breeze. The sunlight filtered through the holey canopies causing a Tyndall affect on her.

Annabeth looked around. They were in a forest. But it felt different. It was definitely unfamiliar. The forest was beautiful; there were not many stray bushes. In fact, the trees looked to be planted properly, with each in its own small space. Birds were twittering above her, earthly smell of…well, the earth and water was spread around the area. She turned to see a large empty area with lesser trees and plants. May be they were in a very tamed forestial area. Probably a reserve.

Annabeth looked down to see Percy unconscious in a –

She stared at what was probably the strangest sight she had ever seen.

Percy was definitely knocked out. He was laying in what Annabeth supposed was a river. Except part of it was dry. The other part of it had water which was flowing over Percy, the water was unwilling to leave him, it seemed.

His thin jacket, shirt and jeans was definitely not water-proof but it seemed he was. The only notable difference the water had on Percy was that it was washing away the rest of his silly dye on the hair. His theory of dyed hair not attracting monsters had not worked. It had been part of the reason how those Canadians had found him in his school in the first place.

Annabeth decided that he looked better with black hair.

She bent down over him to check his pulse. It seemed normal. He looked asleep but she was in no mood to let him continue however sweet he looked as he slept.

In the midst of the silence, there was a crunch of a dry leaf or a twig and she spun around bracing herself.

There was no one in sight. The forest looked larger from her view point on the ground. But definitely no monster or demigod or even mortal.

It was probably an animal. Annabeth really hoped the place wasn't a reserve for a large man-eater kind of animal. Her knife wouldn't be affective with a non-magical creature.

She turned back to Percy thinking of shaking him awake and smacking him for bringing them here. She just knew he had something to do with this.

"I'm so gonna kill you, Seaweed Brain." She hissed ready to punch him when there was a clear sound of weight movement in front of him. Before she could look up, a clear no-nonsense voice said, "Don't move, if you value your life."

Her eyes widened and she tried to stay where she was. Her hands itched to reach for her knife and attack the source of threat, but the voice then said, "Get up."

She got off her knees and stood, gingerly raising her arms slightly. She lifted her head to look at the person. She frowned.

He seemed to be a boy about her age. He had horribly messed up black hair, which was a sharp contrast to his very pale skin. It reminded her of Percy. The boy had round black framed glasses. His eyes seemed to be a bright green shade. His face was hard, his hands holding up a dagger and a…stick?

Except for that he seemed mortal. He wore normal clothes. Jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie, all dark colours of black and red. What struck her most were his sharp eyes and the strange stick.

For a second she thought that he was from some kind of cult. It was probably stereotypical of her to assume that because of his stance and looks but her instincts were screaming at her to brace herself. The boy could definitely do some damage.

"Move towards that tree." He said, looking at the large one on her right. She stepped slowly in that direction not ready to take her eyes off the new-comer. He moved with her but stopped suddenly.

He looked down in confusion and Annabeth saw his eyes widen at the sight of Percy being surrounded by strangely behaving water. She saw his mouth move but couldn't hear the words.

The Daughter of Athena took out her knife and charged, using the distraction to her advantage. Her knife came up to disarm the boy.

She dodged when he immediately retaliated swinging his dagger at her. Annabeth gasped as his speed. She wondered if he had lured her into a false sense of security by staring at Percy.

She had no time to think about that. The boy was as good as her in sparring. He moved with the grace of a snake, striking every time he saw an opening. Years of demigod training kicked in and that was the only reason how she wasn't wounded.

Annabeth dropped to the ground, trying to slash at his legs but he darted out of her reach. She saw him pocket his stick and spin his dagger with a practiced ease which was possible only if he had learnt how to fight like how she had. Intensive.

"One chance. Either give up. Or I'll have you dangling from the tree before you hurt anyone." He said. She could hear the confidence in his tone.

Annabeth glared and said, "You were threatening _me_!"

"You were the one threatening him in the first place." The boy pointed at Percy. Annabeth couldn't comprehend the situation. What?

"No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did."

"I didn't."

"You did."

"I didn't!"

"I'm not deaf, I heard you clearly. You were declaring to kill him!"

Annabeth stared at the green-eyed bespectacled boy before understanding the confusion.

"Are you for real? It was an exaggerated threat! I wasn't going to kill him! I was just mad at him for bringing us here and then passing out!"

The boy stared at her but didn't lower his dagger which was pointed at her. She didn't relax either but then she tried to wonder where she exactly was.

Annabeth hadn't immediately realized it, but the indication that the boy's accent which was not American should have put her on guard. It was clearly British.

A cold wind went through the forest and the sky darkened. Annabeth stared up. There were dark clouds above them and it looked as though it would rain any minute. But that couldn't be possible. It was just past breakfast when she had gone to visit Percy. The day had been bright with not a cloud in the sky. Right now, it looked close to dinner time.

"Hey! I'm talking here! First Sirius, now you, Merlin! Do you have a name?"

Annabeth stared at him. He had relaxed his posture and was twirling the dagger around his fingers as though it was not a dangerous weapon. The action reminded Annabeth of how Percy'd play with his pen when he was bored.

Speaking of which, Seaweed Brain had started to drool which meant he was asleep. How lovely!

"Why don't you tell me yours, first? Annabeth asked the conscious boy.

He shrugged, "I'm Harry."

She waited. He looked at her lazily.

"Full name?"

"Do you know many Harrys?"

"Um… just one, actually. But none personally."

"Well, now you do know a Harry, personally." The boy stressed. "Your name."

Well she was certainly not telling her real name. "Cali." Annabeth said wondering about the more important problems at the moment.

'Harry' gave her a sharp look before saying, "Yeah, I don't believe you."

"Why not?" Annabeth asked. "Besides what proof do I have that your name is Harry?"

"I don't lie." He shrugged again. "But apparently, you do."

Annabeth desperately hoped that she was blushing, but she felt her cheeks heat up. Before she could defend herself he continued.

"Now, tell me how d'you know him?" He said looking at Percy. Annabeth noticed that the river water had washed away his hair dye completely and his face was a stark contrast to his hair. Just like boy standing in front of her.

_Strange_, Annabeth thought. Didn't Percy tell her about his 'brother' (who was coincidentally named, Harry) who looked like him?

"Why do you want to know that?" She asked, holding her knife tightly. If he was trying to lower her guard with idle chit-chat…

He gave her a look which made his eyes gleam dangerously. For a second, she thought he would really attack her but then he rocked back on the heels of his feet.

"I ask this for the simple reason that I know Percy Jackson, probably even better than you."

Annabeth wasn't sure what was more shocking. His casual reference to her best friend or the way he said it. There was a sense of familiarity and protectiveness in his voice. As if he did know Percy better than she.

"Right, I'm just going to call you 'Bets'. Now, Bets, listen. How did you reach here?"

Annabeth wasn't sure how to respond. "Bets?" She asked, her voice choking a little.

Harry shrugged. "Well, it's what I think of when I look at you. You're definitely not muggle, I can tell. But you're also not a witch so… why don't you tell me your secret and I'll tell you mine."

It was like getting hit with Clarisse's Maimer. She kept getting shocked whenever Harry opened his mouth. She hadn't even understood half of what he had said!

"I… what?!"

Harry sighed. There was a strong wind blowing now and the sky became darker. Annabeth looked up to feel a water drop hit her square in the eye.

"Do you want to stand here and continue our not very fruitful conversation in the rain or do you want to get some urban shelter?" Harry asked casually flicking his wrist. His dagger disappeared into his hand. Or up his sleeve. Annabeth wasn't sure, but as it soon started to drizzle, she mumbled, "Shelter."

"Hm. Right, follow me, Bets." Harry turned and walked towards the river. Putting his arms under Percy's knees and upper back, he lifted Percy with inhuman ease.

She watched him soundlessly as Harry simply strolled into the trees carrying a teenage boy his age and probably his weight.

There was definitely something going on here.

"Hey!" She shouted. "Where do you think you're going?"

Harry didn't stop, "Shelter. My house. Technically, my Aunt's house, so I'm taking him to my room, you're welcome to join us. I swear on my magic to not harm either of you intentionally, with the exception that one of you would attack me first."

Annabeth stood there for ten seconds watching him almost disappear into the forest. Then she started running.

* * *

Annabeth saw the row of neat identical houses that lined the edge of the forest. Though it was pouring, the trees kept providing some sort of partial protection so she was barely wet. There was a bit of shivering, though. With the cold wind that gusted through the forest, she hugged herself.

She kept looking towards Percy who seemed to be the most comfortable one in Harry's arms. She was pretty sure that he was cuddling up to the boy. But Harry didn't seem to mind at all.

They reached a wall that was barely her height. There was a rusted gate which took some creaking but she finally got it open to let Harry go through it.

As Annabeth locked the gate, she felt a new gaze. Looking up, she saw a decrepit looking house next to them. The building looked as though it would crumble any time soon. The walls were cracked, paint peeling off. Plants were dried up, weeds and grass grew wild. From her place, she could see two windows, one from what she supposed was the kitchen on the ground floor and the other, on the first floor, probably a bedroom. There was no one in the house.

"Bets?" Harry called. She turned away with a jerk. Harry had raised his eyebrows, looking at her with an expression she couldn't understand. He was standing next to a tree that was as tall as the house. Percy was still drooling.

"That house – "

"Forget about that house, Bets. I'm more important." He let Percy's legs drop down and held him firmly by his shoulder and chest.

"I'll help." Annabeth said walking forwards to take on some of Percy's weight. For some reason, she couldn't help but put a small amount of trust in Harry. There was an ease in him that she could confide in. Nevertheless, she was still on her guard. He had used words like 'witch' and 'magic'. Harry might seem like a mortal, but he didn't act like it.

"Don't get scared." He said. He reached his hand up to catch one of the branches of the tree. With a comfort achievable only with practice, he pulled himself up, climbing the tree, without any fear of slipping in the rain and wet branches. Reaching up, he pushed the first floor window open and climbed down to lift Percy up.

Annabeth helped him silently and then took his hand so that she could start climbing too. His skin was cold. It felt like holing Percy's hand, except this was slightly harder and not as comfortable.

When Annabeth was safely in the room, she sat Percy against the wall, rubbing his shoulders. He had got drenched a little which meant that he was still weak, from doing whatever he had done. And she was pretty sure that it had been a very long distance.

It had been morning when they had left camp. It was past afternoon when they had reached the forest. Either he had bent time, transporting them or they had travelled a very long distance.

Where had he said Harry lived? England.

Nice. Three thousand miles across the ocean. Annabeth made a mental note to smack his head when he woke up.

"Here." Harry said suddenly, tossing something over to her. Annabeth's imagination made it seem as though a ghost was flying towards her, when she realized that it was a white towel.

"Thanks." She mumbled, rubbing her skin and hair to get some warmth. She looked around the room. It was fairly small with one door leading out. Two windows on adjacent walls, a wardrobe, a trunk (?), a table a few bits of paper a feather and a bird cage with a wooden chair and one bed.

Unlike a teenager's room, there were no posters or dirty clothes lying on the floor. Annabeth was glad for that.

Harry picked Percy up again to lay him on a thin bed in the corner next to another window. She watched as he covered him with a sheet after rubbing his arms with another towel. Watching a boy take care of another boy like that was somehow strange. She had seen Apollo campers tending to hurt demigods after sparring or a Capture the Flag game. There was more tenderness her and Annabeth couldn't help but sigh.

"Are you cold?" Harry asked, walking towards a wardrobe. Before she could answer, he gave her a long black sheet. She stared at it in confusion before lifting it up to see straps and a kind of hood.

"It's a winter cloak. We've been getting stray downpours at odd times in the summer for the past few years. Climate's changing. All due to that damned Global Warming. Or so they say."

Annabeth sat in the only chair in the room when he offered and said, "Well, thanks. But I think you have some explaining to do."

Harry took another towel to rub his hair, when he removed it, his hair was sticking up as though there was static in the air. She stifled a giggle.

"Well, this is my Aunt's house. I live in this bedroom for a few hours a day. The rest of my summer takes place in the forest. I go to a boarding school in Scotland. I live here because I literally cannot live anywhere else. My name is Harry Potter. I am, as stories are written, the good guy. I've known Percy for about seven years previous to the six years we've spent in separation. His mother Sally Jackson and he was my family and still are but that depends on how the situation has progressed or deteriorated since they've left."

He looked right at her and Annabeth leaned back a bit. The way he said it was as though he would rather run away from here to any other corner of the world. It made him sound like a trapped bird. She could read the frustration between his words.

"Now, I ask the real question. Who are you? Apple?"

Annabeth's jaw dropped. Harry was holding up a bright red apple. It was shiny and beautiful and delicate to look at. She was positive that it had appeared out of thin air. There definitely was no apple a while back.

She hesitated knowing that it was not smart to eat anything given by a stranger who introduced himself vaguely. Well, at least, she knew his name. It was clear that he wasn't lying.

She cleared her throat. "Right. I'm Annabeth. I've known Percy for a little more than a year. We consider ourselves best friends. We met at a camp I live in. I live in this camp because I cannot live literally anywhere else."

She stressed the sentence with his own words and felt a little proud when he looked a little impressed by her voice.

"He visits this camp only in the summers. The camp is by the coast and we were standing on the ocean when he started talking about his father. A few moments after that we ended up here."

Annabeth took the apple and watched as Harry plucked another apple from… _his hair?_

The apple was equally as red as hers and she watched as he bit into it. He sat on the ground, by the bed next to Percy's legs.

For some reason, Annabeth was wildy reminded of Snow White. She watched Harry chew unperturbed on the strange apple and after some apprehension, bit into hers too.

It was delicious. There was a freshness to it that Annabeth had never tasted before. The sweet juice dribbled down her wrist but she quickly wiped it out. There were no problems on the outer fruit and the inside was pure and untouched by the weather.

"Alright. I'll just call you Beth. 'Annabeth' keeps me in the mind of two girls. Are you going to tell me what exactly you are? I can tell you're not normal."

Annabeth stared. Then she became angry, "My name is 'Annabeth'! Not Anna or Beth. Not Annie either, so don't even think about it. Either you call me Annabeth or not at all."

Harry munched on the apple slowly and swallowed his bite, " 'Not at all' seems to be a strange name for a girl. For a boy too. Is it a unisex name from the States?"

Annabeth honestly wasn't sure whether he was joking or not because by his face, he didn't look like the joking kind.

"Look. I'm not normal. You're not normal. Percy's definitely not normal. I'm using the word 'normal' in no context of hurting your feelings. We all have secrets. Either you tell me yours or we can wait for Percy to wake up and spill everything. For some reason I trust you and Bolt definitely likes you. Beth, do you trust me?"

She gawked at him, "I – of course not! My name's Annabeth! We just met!"

Harry sighed and took another bite. He took his time in chewing and when he was done, he said, "You're lying. Again. My trust should be dwindling but… oh, you've got to be kidding me!"

He clapped his hand to his forehead and grimaced. Standing up quickly he stomped towards the window, opened it and climbed onto the tree.

"I'll be right back!"

He jumped down and ran into the forest.

Annabeth was frozen. She watched him run and jumped up.

"Percy! Wake up! We're in a crazy guy's room and if you don't get up in the next few minutes I'm kicking you!"

She shook his immobile body but he mumbled something and turned his head away from her. Argh! Seaweed Brain!

She stood up, ready to yank him out of bed but then she saw a dog sitting on the table. She stared at it.

It stared back. It had large hazel irises and gleaming dark golden fur. She wasn't sure what kind of breed it was but it seemed pretty small and docile. It simply looked up at her, it's eyes looking strangely intelligent for a dog's.

Her head reeled. She clutched the chair and sat in it, trying to will away the dizziness. She could get a very sweet smell of a flower. She saw the dog get up… her vision swam… darkness closed in.

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**Stay tuned for the next chappie. One week!**

**Cabba.**


	2. Discoveries

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the Harry Potter or Percy Jackson series. Any copyright infringement is unintended. Any reference to other fictional or non-fictional works like books, movies, documentaries and others might occur, although there is no claim established over them. Mentions of real personalities are not considered true. This is pure fan-fiction and is published only for the sake of entertainment.**

**Listening to – 'Don't you worry, Child' by Swedish House Mafia**

**Words – 4158**

* * *

_Annabeth was in a tremendous amount of pain. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think because of the unthinkable weight on her back. She whimpered, trying to hold it. It was horrible. Her body screamed while she was unable to make a sound. The agony had already crossed several limits._

_Suddenly, the burden was gone. She collapsed on the hard rocky ground, feeling the cold wrap her. Her relief was unbounded. She tried to smile, to thank whoever it was who had saved her. But she couldn't open her eyes, couldn't move._

"_Worthy of a hunter, you definitely are. But are you worthy of this love?"_

Annabeth blinked her eyes open. Her neck ached.

She gave a small groan as she massaged the tense muscles and lifted her head from the table on which she was leaning at an awkward angle.

When she remembered what happened before she fell, her eyes widened.

She was definitely in Harry's room. Percy was still asleep on the small bed, Harry was hugging a large book and was leaning against the foot of the bed. He didn't seem comfortable on the ground, but he didn't seem to mind and was easily in the only position of comfort.

Annabeth squinted at the book. Apparently, he had fallen asleep reading the book as it was open and leaning on his chest. She tried to read the title, but the language was not English or Greek. It seemed to have strange symbols along the border and as the heading. There was an artfully old look to the book as though he had stolen it from the ancient artifact section of a museum.

Annabeth was about to get up when a small sound distracted her. She turned towards the table and stared at a magnificently snow-white owl perched in the bird cage she had seen earlier. The cage door was open, but the bird hadn't flown away.

May be it was because her mother was Athena and her animal, or rather, bird of power was an owl, but Annabeth loved the bird as soon as she set her eyes on it.

"Hello." She whispered. It occurred to her that the owl was probably Harry's and she didn't know whether to be angry or impressed by the fact. The owl tilted her head and gave a hoot. Annabeth melted.

The owl hopped out of the cage and placed herself closer to her. Annabeth hesitantly raised her hand. The bird didn't move. Amber eyes stared at her and she extended her fingers to touch the white plumage. The feathers were soft and she ran the back of her fingers down the down.

The owl hooted again and turned her head towards Harry. She gave a slightly louder squawk but Harry didn't move.

Annabeth noticed that the owl had a white envelope attached to her legs. In neat handwriting, the written words were –

To Harry Potter,

House no. 4, 

Privet Drive, Little Whinging, 

Surrey.

Annabeth reached forwards to take the letter but the owl immediately jumped back. She spread her wings and flew towards the other side of the table, closer to Harry's head, giving Annabeth a glare which seemed to say, _It doesn't belong to you._

The demigod sat back in her chair to watch the owl for a few seconds. Then her eyes caught sight of the small clock on the table.

5:27.

She stared. Then she looked out the window. The darkness outside was being dissipated by an orange glow from one side of the horizon. The sun was just rising. How long had she passed out?!

She got off the chair to take better look outside the house. The road was deserted. The street lights were off, now that dawn was approaching. The dull light wasn't much to look at.

She looked out the other window to see the run down house next to the one she was in. The house had an air of 'come hither.'

As she watched the windows of the house, a shiver passed through her. She opened the window and leaned out, staring through the leaves and branches of the tree growing right in front of her. The first floor window of dilapidated building had started to fog up from the inside. As though someone was on the other side, breathing on the glass.

Annabeth frowned and leaned out. She could see a form through the slight fog. It was very blurred. She strained to see a silhouette which looked pale against the dark background. As she watched, the form of a boy slowly materialized. She watched the boy moved closer to the window and look up at her.

They stared at each other for a while and Annabeth had a feeling of dread creep up her. Part of her wanted to hide from the boy. The rest of her was equally scared, but wanted to investigate.

She reached out a grabbed a branch, ready to climb down and over the wall to the house. The house had looked deserted but what was the boy doing there? May be he was lost and took shelter in the building. She felt sad for the little child.

She was about to jump, when the air turned very cold. Her breath turned into a white mist in front of her and she watched as the boy's face twist into a very ugly and dangerous predator's view. The glass in front of her cracked, the house shivered in the frozen atmosphere and she saw the devil in the child's face.

Annabeth opened her mouth to scream in terror. A hand clapped over her face. Someone pulled her out of the tree back into the safe building.

"Damnit, Beth!" Harry swore glaring at the creature in the adjacent house. It glared at Harry and disappeared. The air cleared.

Annabeth removed Harry's hand and gasped, "What… what was that?!" She felt him unwrap his arm from her waist and move away from her. They sat on the ground and she looked at his face which was set in hard lines of silence.

"Something you would never want to meet." He said, after a moment of silence. He looked up when the white owl flew and perched herself on his shoulder.

She watched the owl, feeling a slow sense of calm spreading through her.

"This is Hedwig. She's mine. But she likes you." Harry said, closing his eyes as Hedwig the owl bit his hair and nuzzled his cheek. He noticed the letter attached to her legs and removed it. Without giving a second glance at the writing he slipped it into his pocket. Then removed black hoodie and offered it to Annabeth.

Annabeth didn't realize that she was shaking with cold and a little fear until she hesitantly took it and put it on. Though it was a little cold, it felt good.

"Did you see it?" Harry asked suddenly. She looked up in surprise.

"See… what? That thing in the house? What was it?"

Harry frowned. "I thought I was the only one who could see it. What did it look like to you?"

Annabeth looked over the window. There was no one in the adjacent house.

"It looked like a small kid at first. But then it changed. What exactly is 'it'?"

She watched as Harry clenched his jaw. The he let out a harsh breath as he said, "It's not human. That's for sure. Definitely not a ghost. This is much more terrible. Promise me one thing, Beth?"

Annabeth frowned. He was still calling her that.

"Never go into that place. Nothing is worth that, you hear me?"

She didn't say anything for a while. But she could hear the force in his words. She nodded and he looked a little relieved.

Harry turned to look at Percy who had slept through the entire thing.

"Are you hungry? You didn't finish the apple from last night? What would you like? Options are only fruits, vegetables and edible berries."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. Did he have fruits up his hair or what?

"Green apple. If you have it."

He shrugged and reached into his hair. A second later, a perfectly formed light green apple was offered to her. It tasted as good as the red one had done.

"Let's start." Harry said, leaning back against the side of his table. "We definitely have secrets. I can tell you're different. Like Percy. We'll exchange details alternatively. Is that fine?"

Annabeth crossed her arms. "What makes you think I'd tell you anything?"

Harry mimicked her instance, "Because you're desperate to know what I am."

Annabeth cursed in her head.

Harry took out a small item. On further inspection, she saw that it looked like a coin. A bronze one.

At that moment, she suddenly remembered that she did have a drachma. She could IM Camp. Chiron must be going crazy wondering where the two of them were.

But she didn't know how she could create a rainbow. There wasn't anything very reflective or refractive in the room.

She blinked out of her thoughts and took another bite of her apple, discreetly checking for her knife. It was still with her. If Harry had wanted to hurt her or Percy, he would have right?

"Choose." Harry said.

"What?" Annabeth looked confused.

He sighed, "Heads, you go first. Tails, I'll start."

He flipped the coin and let it fall on the floor with a sonorous clatter. She saw the embossed head of a strange looking creature along with strange writing on the curve of the coin.

Harry took the coin and kept it in his pocket, waiting for her begin.

Annabeth pressed her lips together. Then she said, "You're right. I'm not exactly normal. I'm not fully human."

Harry nodded slowly. "Okay. Well, you see this?"

He took out a stick and twirled it around his fingers. It was dark and sleek and it definitely didn't look like an ordinary piece of wood.

"It's called a wand."

Annabeth stared at the wand. Wands, Witch, Magic. Her eyes widened.

"Are you saying that… you're a – you're a _witch_?!"

Harry's composed face looked outraged, "Do I look like a girl to you?!"

Annabeth stared at him. "What?"

"Wizard! I'm a wizard, honestly!"

"Oh." Her cheeks heated up. Yeah, that should have been obvious, right?

"Sorry. I… well, what do you know about mythology?"

Harry frowned. He reached up and picked up the same book he had when she had woken up. He opened a certain page in the book and read a part of it.

Without looking up he said, "Are you talking about Greek Mythology?"

She inhaled sharply. "Yes."

Harry frowned at her. "And how are you connected to this?"

"I'm half human and half God."

She waited for his reaction. Outwardly, he didn't do much. But his green eyes looked brighter.

"Like Heracles?"

She nodded. "You're turn."

Harry looked up and then said, "Bolt."

"What?" Annabeth looked stricken. 'Bolt'? Why did he say that? Was he referring to the Lightning Bolt that was stolen the previous year?

A small dog appeared in front of her. Annabeth jumped back, her back hitting the wall behind her. It was the same dog she had seen yesterday before she had collapsed. The animal had literally appeared out of thin air. Annabeth was pretty sure she looked silly for cowering from a tiny dog but she was ready to attack it with her knife and that would not be pretty.

"This is my Familiar, Bolt. She isn't just an animal. She's a shape-shifter in training. She's a part of in essence. Her first shape is that of a young dog. Her second favourite form is a kitten. She has a snarky attitude and don't be surprised if you hear her voice in your head."

"Uh…" Annabeth didn't know what exactly to say.

"She apologizes for knocking you out yesterday. She says that after I left, you started to panic about some crazy person kidnapping you. She just wanted you to calm down."

The dog looked up at Annabeth, blinking its rather large hazel coloured eyes. Annabeth relaxed a little. The puppy dog-eyes could be best given by a dog that looks like a puppy.

"It's okay. It just hit me rather hard."

Harry nodded and patted Bolt's head. She turned around and leapt up to his shoulder. Then she climbed on top of his head and settled down, apparently being comforted by his hair.

Harry leaned back again and Annabeth was distracted by that sigh of an owl and a puppy on the boy's shoulders and head to say anything else. Strangely, it didn't look strange at all.

"Right… well, I don't have any pets. But – "

"You said you're half-god." Harry pointed out.

She nodded, "Yes, I'm a demigod. I'm the Daughter of Athena."

Annabeth sat up straight as she said it. Harry looked at her and then said, "Right."

She felt a little disappointed that he gave no other reaction. But she did laugh when she said, "Then how are you friends with Percy?"

He jerked his thumb to point at Percy when he asked the question. "Well, my mother wonders that too. Many people do."

Harry nodded but then stopped when Bolt let out a whine. "Alright. This is too slow. I'm a wizard. I attend a school of sorcery in Scotland. There thousands of wizards and witches all around the world but not in America. I know the reason why, now. We've been here for thousands of years. About three, probably. Our world is a secret from the muggle world. Muggle means a person with no magical powers. Your turn."

Annabeth's head reeled. Wizards and Witches have been around for three millennia! How come she'd never heard of this? Why wouldn't the Gods say anything? Surely, a demigod and a wizard would have come across each other before?

"Um… I'm a Daughter of Athena. There are not as many demigods as there are wizards and witches. We reside mostly around, America. But there are a few older demigods in Canada and South America. The Greek Gods are real and have been around for nearly three millennia."

Okay, that could not have been a coincidence. Both worlds existing for so many eras and yet not meeting each other?

"Our world is a secret from the mortals too." She added in.

Harry was quiet. Hedwig stared at Annabeth before flying towards her. She tilted her head and quietly perched herself on Annabeth's shoulder. The blonde looked up and touched the owl's feathers. Hedwig was very beautiful.

"What about Percy? He's always shown an affinity towards water." Harry said slowly.

Annabeth took a while to look away from Hedwig. "Yeah. But maybe I should let him wake up and tell you himself. You know… to give him a chance."

Harry nodded. He turned towards the sleeping boy. Then he frowned.

"How did he get this?" Harry muttered kneeling up and reaching for a small scar of Percy's wrist.

Annabeth craned her neck to see the pale twist of skin which was the mark caused by the scorpion which had stung him last year.

Harry's fingers barely touched the skin when Percy's eyes snapped open.

Percy's entire body jerked upwards, his head slamming into Harry's. Both boys shouted, "**OW!**" before falling backwards. Percy fell back on the bed. Harry fell against the table, knocking a picture frame on the top of his head.

"What the – " Percy began wincing, clutching his temple.

"Nice timing, Percy. We should all synchronize our watches to your body clock." Harry said through gritted teeth.

Annabeth watched the scene with a mild fascination. Hedwig was just as quiet, her eyes growing huge and Bolt had settled down next to Annabeth on the floor.

Percy stared at Harry as though the latter was a very friendly alien. "H… Harry?!"

"Who do you think? Snow White?" Harry snapped back, rubbing his forehead harshly.

For a second, Percy froze as he watched Harry grumble. Then, as though a light had switched on in his head, Percy leapt forwards and down. He wrapped his arms around Harry and squeezed with all his might.

"Harry! It's really really you! Gods, I missed you! I can't believe it's you! This isn't a dream, right? It can't be fake! I can get your orange smell! And roses! And you look the same! Except different! You still have that cool scar! You still wear glasses! Did I break it? No! You're alright! We're really here! Back in Surrey! This is the best day of my life!"

Percy said all this without taking a breath. He seemed absolutely ecstatic, his eyes were shining as he pressed his cheek to the other boy's.

Harry, on the other hand, looked a little distraught as though he wasn't used to be held so close by anyone.

"Percy." He said, his jaw clenched. "You're in my personal space."

Percy closed his eyes and smiled, "I know you missed me. Besides, I can't see any personal space."

"That's because you're crowding in it!" Harry barked.

Annabeth watched the exchanged. She couldn't help but point out to herself the similarities in the boys' faces.

They had very pale skin, but Percy had put it down to be normal. Annabeth had no problem with that but she knew that having less melatonin was not a correct reason for cold skin.

Usually, people that pale would have lighter coloured hair and eyes. Here, the boys sported pitch black mess. Annabeth hadn't thought anyone to have hair wilder than Percy's, but that was before she had met Harry.

Their eyes too, she noticed. They had sparkling eyes. Percy had his sea-green iris hue meshed with blue, courtesy of his father. Harry's seemed to be a brilliant emerald which was undoubtedly rare.

Other than that, there was nothing else in common. But she saw their postures. Their actions, how they purposefully moved to do something, anything. There was something definitely strong between them. She didn't know such bonds could exist without connection of blood relatives.

May be they were related. One could never be sure of their roots.

Percy laughed, seemingly unperturbed by Harry's annoyance. He sat back and held up his palms. "I missed you, Harry."

The green eyed boy inhaled slowly and exhaled. "Yeah. I did too. No monkey making me pull my hair everyday had made my life slightly boring."

Percy grinned. "Aww! You haven't changed at all. Hey, guess what?! Mom published a book!"

Harry blinked up at him. "Really?"

"Yeah."

Annabeth cleared her throat. Both boys looked startled that there was another person in the room.

"Percy." She said with a slight trepidation in her voice, "What do you remember before waking up?"

Percy bounced a little, keeping his palms on the floor. Then he frowned, "Um. I'm not exactly sure. I don't … I …"

"We were standing on the beach." She said slowly trying to prompt his memory. Percy looked up at the ceiling, then at the owl next to Annabeth and at the little puppy, who was watching the scene.

"The ocean…" He whispered.

"You, Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth hissed.

Percy had the decency to look ashamed. "Yeah. About that. I had no idea what was actually happening until it already happened. But then I felt so tired."

Percy yawned for effect.

"Poseidon." Harry said suddenly. "Or is it someone else?"

"What?" Percy asked confused.

Harry looked at Annabeth for explanation. She nodded.

"You're a Son of Poseidon?" Harry asked, his voice a little loud for the hour.

"Yeah." Percy said, shrugging. Then he looked at Annabeth. "Did you tell him about us?"

"Yes." She said feeling a little tired. Her apple was nearly done. "And he told me about him."

Percy didn't seem to understand that. He looked towards Harry who inclined his head, "I'm a wizard."

Percy sat there in silence for a while. Annabeth watched his face for any relative emotion. She could see surprise, acceptance and understanding.

"Cool." Percy said, grinning once more.

Harry sighed.

* * *

"iris messaging." Harry repeated as he watched Percy conjure a little mist in the dull sunlight. A faint rainbow appeared in front of the mirror and Annabeth tossed her drachma into the rainbow, praying, "Lady iris, please accept our offering and call Chiron at Camp Half Blood."

After Harry had explained a little more about the concept of magic and Annabeth had explained about the reality of Greek Gods in the 21st century, she decided to call Chiron at Camp. It was really lucky of her to have that drachma. Percy kept commenting about how boring the Dursleys still were and by the sound of his voice, Annabeth wondered if Harry really liked his family or not.

She couldn't help but think about how they entered the house. They had climbed up a tree to his room and not by the front or even kitchen entrance. Harry definitely did not trust his relatives.

She couldn't help but sympathize with him. She knew how it was to be made an outcast by blood.

Right now, with the family sleeping in, Harry, Percy and Annabeth were crowded into one of the common bathrooms, so that Percy could manipulate the water for a rainbow. She had explained about IMing to Harry and all he did was nod and repeat the phrase.

The rainbow shimmered before the face of a sleeping Chiron appeared in the mist.

"Gods! I forgot! There's a time difference between Surrey and Long Island!" Annabeth groaned.

"Five hours, nearly." Harry said.

"Really? Five hours! But it's just across the Atlantic." Percy wondered.

"Chiron!" Annabeth called. She couldn't waste her only drachma. She doubted Harry had any coins Iris would accept.

Luckily, Chiron moved a little and woke up when Annabeth shouted again.

He looked confused and then got up suddenly.

"Annabeth! Percy! Thank the Gods, you're alright! Where have you been?!"

"It does work." Harry muttered.

"We had a sort of accident." Annabeth replied.

"A good kind of accident." Percy put in. Annabeth glared at him and he stepped back.

"What?" Chiron looked weary.

"I travelled through water and took Annabeth with me. It was a mistake, really. We're in England." Percy said, dodging Annabeth when she let out a frustrated sigh.

"England!"

"Yeah. It's pretty cool. You remember me talking about Harry? You know? My friend? Here he is!"

Percy pulled Harry towards the mist.

Chiron stared at the newcomer and nodded, "Well hello, Harry."

"Hi." Harry said hesitantly.

"Chiron. It's okay. We're not in any danger. But it could take us a while to get back." Annabeth said. Harry gladly stepped out to give her space.

"We'll try to be there in a day at the most. I feel a little sleepy. As soon as I'm strong again, we'll be washing towards you!" Percy snickered at the awful joke.

Harry rolled his eyes and Annabeth snorted.

"England." Chiron muttered again. "You do realize that I'm setting the two of you to dish duty for a week?"

Percy stared, "Well, that's not much incentive for us to come back."

"The strawberry fields are in full bloom."

"We'll be there in half a day!"

At this, Annabeth couldn't help but laugh.

"You still like strawberries?" Harry asked Percy. The latter nodded.

Harry reached into his hair. Annabeth watched as he produced a blue coloured strawberry in his palm and offered it to a very happy Percy.

"You're the best!" Percy savoured each tiny bite of the little fruit. Harry gave him a strange look before shrugging. "I know."

"Not very modest." Annabeth muttered before turning back to Chiron.

"We have some really big news for you. You might probably know it, in which case we demand an explanation." She said, trying to observe any nervousness in the centaur.

"What is it about?" Chiron asked looking suitably relaxed. Clearly, conjuring fruits out of hair was a parlour trick.

"Not telling anything." Annabeth shook her head.

"Give me topic." Chiron smiled at her as if he knew where the conversation was going.

"On one condition. No dish duty." Annabeth countered.

Percy looked up. "Oh, you're good. She's like Mom, right Harry?"

Harry raised an eyebrow at him. Annabeth desperately hoped she wasn't blushing.

"Oh no." Chiron said complacently. "The both of you had half the camp turning every rock on the island searching for you. You disappeared without any warning from any quarter. I feared the worst."

"Well, the accident was unprecedented." Annabeth said tilting her head in Percy's direction.

The rainbow flickered. Ten seconds left.

"Be careful you two. It's good to have met you, Harry." Chiron said looking at the boy behind Annabeth and Percy. Harry raised his hand in reply.

The rainbow disappeared and Percy stopped the mist.

"Blue strawberries are the best. Hey, Harry. If you ever visit Camp, will you turn the strawberry field blue in colour?"

"No."

* * *

**I like how the chapters are turning out. A bit long, maybe, I'm still sorting out which scene goes where in some cases. Stay tuned for the next update.**

**Cabba.**


	3. A Commencement

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the Harry Potter or Percy Jackson series. Any copyright infringement is unintended. Any reference to other fictional or non-fictional works like books, movies, documentaries and others might occur, although there is no claim established over them. Mentions of real personalities are not considered true. This is pure fan-fiction and is published only for the sake of entertainment.**

**Warning – Harry has a tendency to swear when he's angry. If you feel uncomfortable or mind it too much, tell me and I'll edit it out.**

**Listening to – What Time is it? from HSM 2**

**Words –3571**

* * *

"Quidditch." Percy said dreamily, holding up Harry's Firebolt.

Harry's trunk had been nearly overturned as he told them more about his world. He could feel his own reluctance, see Annabeth's apprehension and watch Percy's excitement bubble.

He told them about the workings of wizards, education, ministry and Quidditch (of course) in summary and showed them his broom with mildly disguised pride.

"Here it is." Harry said, pulling out a large book.

_Sorcery-The Commencement_

The large book was mostly in Ancient Runes but there were a few topics in Latin and English. The authors had written about six major theories of the ways magic could have began in humans.

"What language is this?" Annabeth asked staring at the tome. Harry rubbed the title to make the words gleam.

"Oh man, you're still into books, are you?" Percy grumbled. Harry gave him a look before flipping through the pages.

"The name of the book is in Latin. It's mostly in another symbol language called Ancient Runes. I have only a year's learning of the language, but I can read enough of it to understand the some of the hypothesis. The book is about how magic came to be on Earth. Of course, it was very long ago so there have only been speculations."

Annabeth took the book and Harry noticed her grey eyes gleam with fascination. She was clearly attracted to knowledge mainly of discovering new and old facts around her. Basically, she reminded him of Hermione when she had slapped Malfoy, months ago.

"You think there's a connection to how both the Greek Gods and Magic have existed for roughly three thousand years?" She asked, turning the pages delicately.

Harry nodded. "There are no such things as coincidences."

Percy looked up from the Firebolt, " Isn't there a God of Magic?"

"Goddess." Annabeth corrected. "Lady Hecate is the Goddess of Magic and Witchcraft."

"And Crossroads." Harry mumbled taking his book from her and turning past a few chapters. He reached the fifth section and showed it to the demigods.

"This theory talks about ancient deities blessing their devotees to become powerful. It's probably a relation to a God blessing people with magic." Harry said pointing to a picture which looked like a painting of a huge person decked out in dramatic robes standing over a group of people, some of them kneeling, while the giant or God, showered light on them.

"That cannot be Hecate." Percy declared.

"This is just what the artist imagined." Harry explained. "My point is that one of my friends thinks that magic might have simply sprung up from a certain point of existence. If we take this guess, it could be possible that the magic we have is from the Gods. It simply evolved through us mortals."

"It's like the theory of Panspermia." Annabeth wondered, nodding.

"Crockery?" Percy mumbled. He took the book off Harry hands to stare at the painting.

"Panspermia is the assumption that life on Earth came from another planet in the Universe. Now, that's just a theory. Harry, you're friend might be right. I could go back and confirm with Chiron."

Harry sighed and leaned against the wall. "I still can't believe that _Chiron_ is your mentor. He's a legend."

Percy grinned, "He is one cool centaur. But I love his friends, the Party Ponies. They rock!"

"Right." Harry mumbled.

There was a harsh knocking on Harry's door and a boy's voice was heard, "Hey! Mum and Dad want to talk to you!"

Harry got up and at that moment, the door banged open, knocking him in the head again. He fell into his wardrobe behind the door, but then a huge figure stood in front of him.

_Oh great_. Harry thought, feeling a painful knot on his head.

Dudley had not been happy this entire summer; he had taken to slamming doors and windows, stomping all around the house and shouting at the injustice of his new diet. Right now, his blond cousin stood facing Percy and Annabeth who were seated on the floor.

"MUM! Harry's got a girl in his room!"

Seriously?

"Dudley?! Is that really you? Wow, you grew from a beach ball into a … what exactly are you doing?" Percy exclaimed getting up.

Dudley stared at him. He turned around to see Harry on the ground with a potential concussion. Then his eyes widened.

"MUM?! Harry's got a girl and a boy in his room!"

"Enough." Harry said, pressing his hand on the swelling on his head. The room spun a little, but he steadied himself.

"Hey Harry? How many fingers am I holding up?" Percy said, concerned. There was also a note of amusement in his voice.

"Three." Harry mumbled and looked at Dudley who ran from the room.

"Your cousin?" Annabeth asked. She sounded unsure as though she didn't know what to make of what just happened.

"Yes. Although, I keep think my aunt must have been adopted…" Harry said, pushing past Percy's outstretched arms and walking towards the door. A woman appeared in the doorway and she looked, with wide eyes at the three teenagers.

"What… who are you? What do you think? You can bring strangers into this my house?!"

Her high pitched voice was not helping his headache.

"They aren't strangers." Harry muttered but Percy walked ahead and held his hand out to Aunt Petunia.

"Hello Mrs. Dursley! Remember me?" Percy's voice was absolutely jovial as though he found nothing wrong in the scene. Well, he hadn't changed much.

Aunt Petunia stared at him and then at Harry. She looked dumbfounded as her eyes kept darting in between Harry and Percy, clearly taking in their similarities.

"I'm Percy." Percy said sounding disappointed. "Percy Jackson. I lived next door with my mother, Sally. Come on, you can't forget me!"

Apparently, she didn't. Her eyes grew wide in horror. She stumbled back into the small corridor outside the room and shrieked.

"VERNON?!"

Harry sighed. "Not a good idea, Percy. She's going to scream the neighborhood down."

Harry opened the door wider and saw a something flying towards him and Percy.

The two boys ducked. Annabeth jumped up as a frying pan came hurling above the boys' heads and hit the wall behind them.

"Jeez, now Dudley throws pans? What is it with pans?" Percy yelled.

"Calm down, you!" Harry shouted as Dudley defended himself with a desert bowl. Petunia ran downstairs and stood in front of her son as though trying to shield him.

Harry stared at them until Uncle Vernon came running in huffing and complaining about the distance from the living room to the dining hall.

Harry, Percy and Annabeth watched the Dursleys from the first floor landing.

"Nice family?" Annabeth tried.

"Don't, Annabeth. Just not worth it." Percy said, shaking his head at the display.

"Out!" Uncle Vernon shouted. He ran towards the cupboard under the stairs and yanked it open, searching for something inside while Aunt Petunia kept shouting curses at the three of them.

"You know me! I'm Percy –" Percy was cut off when Harry pushed him and Annabeth down as Uncle Vernon came in view again. He was holding a rifle in his hand. He cocked it and pressed the trigger.

Harry heard Annabeth gasp as the bullet struck the door behind them.

"Get out! Now!" Uncle Vernon scream, stomping up the staircase.

There was another loud 'bang' and the three of them scrambled into Harry's room.

"He has a gun! Gods of Olympus! _He has a gun_!" Percy said, wide-eyed.

The door blasted open and Uncle Vernon pointed the rifle at Percy's chest.

Harry kicked the door and the frame hit Uncle Vernon hard. The rifle jerked in his hand as the bullet hit the space between Annabeth and Percy.

"You!" The man bellowed and swung the rifle at Harry's head.

Everything slowed down.

Harry had only an hour's sleep in the night. He had spent a long while searching for the book, _Sorcery – The Commencent, _he had spent most of his energy trying to understand what the theories meant. He had seen peculiar beads around both Percy's and Annabeth's neck. She had more, but the bead with the trident had attracted Harry's attention the most.

He hadn't really understood it at the time, but Harry had prepared to keep an open mind for whatever explanation either of the newcomers would give him. It was a good thing he had.

And when he had dropped off to sleep, he had been struck by a nightmare that most definitely did not seem like one. More like something real.

Voldemort was planning something. Harry couldn't afford any lapse of alertness, now.

On top of that… Gods.

Harry had sworn violently in his head. Gods. _Effing Gods_ were real. They were alive. Of course, you'd think Gods can solve anything, but nooooo…

So, no. He had not had a good night or day. And now, Uncle Vernon was trying to kill him.

Oh, this was turning out to be a fine birthday.

Harry let his magic flow into his body. His father's strength came to him and his skin hardened like marble.

The gun struck his head and broke into two. The shattering caused a jolt to go up Uncle Vernon's arms. Harry grabbed the hands, twisted and kicked him in the stomach.

Uncle Vernon went flailing with a howl, falling backwards. His head nearly missed the banister as he collapsed on the floor with a groan.

"I've had enough!" Harry snapped. "Bolt!"

Bolt jumped out of his chest and turned into a wolf mid-air.

Percy and Annabeth yelled and jumped back towards one of the windows. His familiar stood as still as she could in the middle of Harry's room.

Hedwig flew and settled herself on Harry's shoulder. He glared at his uncle.

"I'll leave. Just like the both of us want. Good riddens, I hope we never meet."

Harry turned to see his room completely packed into the trunk. Bolt shuddered a little and looked up at Harry. Being a very shaggy wolf and coming up to his shoulders, she seemed very large.

Harry looked around the room. Except for the bed, table, chair and wardrobe, the room was completely bare.

Percy was staring at Bolt, a long bronze sword in his one hand and his dagger, Oneroi in his other.

Annabeth had a knife in her grip but she was looking at Harry. Her grey eyes were sharp and she had her guard up against him. The two stood together as though it was a stance they knew well.

"Let's go." Harry said.

He picked up his trunk and Hedwig's cage. Keeping a hand on Bolt's head, he nodded. She swung her tail at the demigods.

The moment they were in contact, Harry felt himself moving in a flash of colours and space. The painless journey was less than five seconds.

* * *

Harry stumbled on the ground. Luckily, they had landed on a soft patch of grass and Harry was able to regain his dignity by not getting hit anywhere else.

Bolt shook her entire body as though she were a wet dog.

Hedwig squawked as though she was very displeased with her journey.

Harry heard two groans from the ground and saw Percy and Annabeth sprawled down quite close to each other.

Annabeth's head was on his chest and Percy's hand was over her arm. Harry raised his eyebrows at their predicament.

"Friends, huh?" He asked.

"What?" Percy asked. Annabeth let out a muffled sound of sorts and pushed him away from her, glaring at Percy as though it was all his fault.

Harry simply opted to look around to check whether they landed in the right place.

"_Of course we did!"_ Bolt said in slight indignation.

Daniel's orphanage loomed right next to them.

Harry kicked his trunk and the lid flew open. He grabbed his Invisibility cloak and stuffed it in his jacket.

"What just happened? No lies!"Annabeth said suddenly. Harry turned and saw that she was standing over him with her knife pointed at him.

"Bolt transported us from Surrey to London. Are you missing any body parts?"

"What?!" Percy yelled looking down himself to check.

Annabeth stared at Harry in disbelief.

"Just a requirement." Harry said. Then he looked over at Percy who was checking his hair as though counting each strand. "Percy, you're obviously alright. Stop it."

"Right." He said standing up shakily. Harry frowned.

"Why are you holding a pen?"

Percy looked down in surprise; then he grinned. "Oh yeah, I bet you don't have anything like this."

He clicked the ball point pen and it grew. It grew into the lethal looking sword Harry had seen Percy holding it a while back. It looked bronze like the knife Annabeth had and the daggers Harry and Percy owned.

"Say 'hello' to Riptide." Percy said proudly.

Annabeth sighed and pocketed her knife. Harry gauged the sword. Clearly old but definitely dangerous.

"Mum lets you use it?" Harry asked.

Percy looked a little offended, "Of course! I grew up, Harry."

"I know." Harry said simply. He purposely looked at Annabeth and then back at Percy.

"Uh… is this going to be a yearly occurrence, Harry?" A new voice interrupted.

Harry, Percy, Annabeth, Bolt and Hedwig looked up.

Daniel Potter, Harry's cousin was looking down at them from his perch on the wall beside them. He looked a little taller since coming back from Hogwarts. It was as though the boy grew more in the one month they had not seen each other rather than the entire year at Hogwarts.

"Danny, meet Percy Jackson and his best friend, Annabeth. Percy, Annabeth meet my little cousin, Daniel."

Daniel cleared his throat. "But you may call me DJ. Harry here, just doesn't get it."

"Cousin?!" Percy asked, a little stunned. "Upgraded from Dudley, huh?"

"Famous Percy Jackson." Daniel said, almost singing the words like a chant. "Heard a bit about you. Harry missed you like how a fish misses water. He just won't admit it, right Harry?"

Percy looked quite pleased with himself. Harry glared up at Daniel.

"What?" Daniel asked trying not to grin.

* * *

"Seriously?! He actually had a real gun? Whoa. Just be glad Sirius is coming back tonight, or else you're homeless."

Daniel was packing. Again. Like the previous year, Harry was hanging by the window watching his cousin push everything he needed into his trunk. Percy and Annabeth hung outside the building talking in low tones.

Hedwig and Garth, DJ's owl, had already left for the Weaselys a while back, each holding a letter for Ron and Ginny, respectively.

"So… demigods mean superhuman like powers, right?" Daniel asked out loud. Percy nodded while Annabeth seemed a bit more reserved.

"Ron's ready." Bolt said.

Harry nodded and looked towards the others.

"Are you ready?"

"Yup." Daniel said throwing his trunk out the window.

"Yes!" Percy said.

"No! Wait!" Annabeth exclaimed and dragged Percy farther away from them to continue her point on whatever they were talking about.

"Shouldn't you tell someone?" Harry accused Daniel as the younger boy jumped out.

He grinned and shrugged, "They know that I'm leaving tonight. At least, they think I'm leaving tonight. Sirius can pick us up at the Weaselys better than separately at your place and then here."

He then leaned in and whispered, "You sure they're best friends? I mean, she's not like his girlfriend or anything, right? She's pretty."

Harry sighed. "Really, Danny? That's what you think is the crux of the matter?"

"Merlin, Harry. I'm thirteen! By the way, thanks for birthday gift. It had to have cost a lot! How'd you know I would be taking Astronomy, anyway? That telescope must have cost a hundred galleons!"

Harry shrugged. "Your welcome. By the way, it cost seventy two. So don't go on and exaggerate to everyone –"

"I won't." Daniel said rolling his eyes. "I'm not a child. Still, you're an awesome bro – cousin! Great cousin!"

Harry looked away from Daniel. He knew what he had been nearly said. And for a moment, he felt normal too.

"Okay." Annabeth said, announcing. She walked with a purpose towards Harry, Percy trailing behind her like a kicked puppy.

"I don't trust you. How should I know whether you're taking us somewhere safe? I have no reason to put my life in the hands of wizards."

Harry's eyes narrowed. Oh, he did not like her tone. Percy looked a little abashed and Daniel kept staring at Annabeth in wonder.

"Well, Percy said that he's almost ready to go back to your little camp along with you." Harry said as though talking about the recipe of his favourite coffee type.

"For that, you need water. Preferably a natural body of water. I doubt a bottle would do."

Percy and Daniel snorted.

"I, on no condition, am going back to Surrey. There is no water around this place. We're almost in the heart of London. The best place is to go to my friend's home in Ottery St. Catchpole. There a good sized pond near his house and the both of you can leave using that. If you're not sure, we'll help you reach to the coast and you can leave by the sea. And no, I won't hurt you unless you aggravate me."

Harry cocked his head as Percy gave a grin from behind Annabeth's back. Annabeth's eyes told Harry that she was thinking. Intricately. Her eyes were definitely resembling Albus Dumbledore's. Sharp and intuitive. Then again, people said that Harry's and Dumbledore's had the same brilliance even though he hadn't inherited that aspect from the warlock.

Annabeth folded her hands and then looked down towards the small puppy who was sitting on Harry's left shoe. Bolt looked up at her innocently.

"Fine." She mumbled. Percy was almost jumping in his spot. He looked as though he had taken in a substantial amount of sugar or caffeine.

"Right then. Hold on to me."

Percy slung his arm over Harry's shoulder and held Annabeth's hand. Daniel reached for Harry's sleeve and Annabeth, with a little hesitance, touched his arm.

The journey was even shorter than before.

Harry was the only one standing. Bolt gave a yawn and jumped up to his head, settling happily and drowsily into his hair.

They were about ten yards away from the rickety building, a towering structure which was clearly older than everyone who lived in the place.

The Burrow was home to Ron's family, the Weaselys. The best thing about the place was that Harry felt that it painfully reminded him of a home which he lacked.

The door opened and a small red haired figure stepped out. The person gave the group of four teenagers a look before looking back into the house and shouting, "They're here! Damn, Harry's faster than the pizza service!"

"Ginevra, watch your tongue!" Another female's voice echoed from within the house.

"I can't, my tongue's not that long!"

Harry picked up Daniel's and his trunks as he walked up to the house. Daniel waved at Ginny and she saluted back at him. Harry received a glare from her but he didn't bother much. He'd probably never make a better relation between them.

"That is so cool." Percy said slowly looking up at the strange building. Annabeth seemed a little speechless and she spluttered, "That… that's all wrong! It can't stand up like that! How's it balanced? The equilibrium is all wrong! Look, it's leaning towards the side at an impossible angle! This isn't possible!"

Ginny gave her an unimpressed look, "It's magic."

"But it's impossible!"

"Magic makes things possible."

"But the symmetry is all wrong! The top floors look modern while the ground floor looks vintage! You can't combine blocks like that and live in it!"

Ginny raised her eyebrows and said, "And yet, it's standing. It's magic. You better accept it or you'll go mad before you even step into the Burrow."

Annabeth looked a little distressed at the thought of standing inside the building. Percy leaned in and whispered something to her. Her cheeks darkened and she stayed quiet.

"Hi Ginny. You cut your hair again?" Harry said to make her irritated.

She didn't disappoint. "Of course I did! What, you thought my hair stole the kitchen scissors and sheared itself off? I see you didn't cut yours. Planning to grow it and change your name to 'Harriet'?"

"After you turn into a 'Geoffrey'."

"I think she's already done that." A new voice said and its owner came into view.

Ron looked taller again, hovering above Harry and Percy, by at least two inches. He looked a little thinner though Harry knew that it wasn't from eating less.

"Hey good buddy. Heard you were bringing family?"

"Friends." Harry corrected. "This is Percy and Annabeth."

The two who were introduced seemed to be awestruck by the interior of the house.

Mrs. Weasely came into the room and smiled widely. She looked the same to Harry. A little weary but just as pleasant.

"Oh! Hello. We just got your letter."

She pointed towards the window where Hedwig and Garth were eating a few owl treats. Errol, the Weaselys' family owl was inching closer and closer towards Hedwig but she gave a squawk and he flew back a foot.

"You're not muggles?" Mrs. Weasely murmured staring at Percy and Annabeth.

Harry sighed. He had a lot to explain.

* * *

**How was the chapter? Once I find my edge, things will pick-up, until then… stay tuned!**

**Cabba.**


	4. Remembering

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the Harry Potter or Percy Jackson series. Any copyright infringement is unintended. Any reference to other fictional or non-fictional works like books, movies, documentaries and others might occur, although there is no claim established over them. Mentions of real personalities are not considered true. This is pure fan-fiction and is published only for the sake of entertainment.**

**I think I got flamed…  
No, that's not the reason for the late update.  
Yes, I got sidetracked by something else.  
No, I'm not abandoning the series.  
Yes, I'll stop rambling.**

**Warning – Slight mention of alcoholic drinks which the author does not promote.**

**(This is more like a filler.)**

**Listening to – Here I Am by The Drew Davis Band**

**Words – 2462**

* * *

"Marina trench! That's where I've always wanted to go. I've seen pictures of it. Bill, my older brother, he says that some of the oddest things happen at the bottom."

"Oh cool! Yeah, I've seen satellite photos of the place. It looks awesome. It's like a circle and everywhere around is really shallow except for the trench. You know if there was a huge flood over the place, it would be the biggest whirlpool in the entire world!"

"Whoa, I can just imagine it! Is it true the most mysterious occurring take place in the ocean?"

"Duh! Especially the parts where there is no sunlight. You should see the animals and other creatures. Most of them haven't even been discovered!"

"Amazing! Have you been there?"

"Oh, I've been in the Sea of Monsters. You know? The Bermuda Triangle? I haven't been to the bed of any ocean, though. My mom would have a fit!"

"Same with mine. Did you know… "

Harry sighed and leaned back on the worn old couch of the Weaselys' sitting room. Mrs. Weasely had offered them a fitful breakfast. Harry had missed her food. She really could cook. She always got the tastes balanced with hints of new flavours in all her dishes.

The Weaselys were shocked by the revelation of a new world. Apparently, no one thought it possible, but then again… Gods? Who could have made a leap to that conclusion without spending centuries researching and connecting instances of co-relations between Wizards and Gods?

May be Nicolas Flamel knew something about it. Unfortunately, he had destroyed the Sorceror's stone…

What about Dumbledore? It would be just like him to hide away something like this from everyone.

Harry sighed and felt Bolt jumped from his lap onto the floor and climb up Percy's legs.

"Aww!" Percy said, picking up the Familiar. He petted and scratched the back of her neck and Bolt whined.

Percy and Ron had been in an intense discussion of water. At first, they had started spouting out random facts about water when they had gotten caught up with the excitement and then continued talking about what they could do, how they could connect and manipulate or relate to it.

To Harry, water was probably one of the last topics he would ever talk about. It was like, chatting endlessly about bright weather when there were rains of cats and dogs.

Percy had always said that Harry was afraid of water. Ron had suspected that Harry's aversion to it ran quite deep and strange. Daniel hadn't noticed much about that aspect. Ginny simply said that water was dumber than fire while Hermione kept her thoughts to herself.

Sally, however, knew more than she was letting on.

Harry missed her.

May be, if Percy was strong enough to take both Harry and Annabeth back to New York –

"No!" Harry said out loud, making the two boys, sitting across from him, jump. Bolt rolled her eyes and left the room, probably in search of more food.

"No?" Percy asked, sounding aghast. Clearly, he had been talking about something he liked.

Harry said, "I was talking to myself."

"Oh. We thought that you said 'no' to koi. I mean, who doesn't like koi? They're the softest little snuggle fish buddies ever."

Ron gave Percy a strange look but then shrugged subtly to himself. Harry watched the two boys in front of him. One, his best friend. The other, his unofficial adopted brother.

Both with an affinity to the thing Harry hated the most.

"Water?"

Harry growled.

Percy and Ron stared at him as though he were mad.

Harry almost felt it. Ron was holding out a mug, probably with water, to Harry.

"Uh… no thanks." Harry mumbled and got up quickly to leave the room. The doorway, was however blocked by Ron's brothers who had just left the kitchen.

"Hi Fred, George." Harry said warily, trying to elbow his way out. Fred grinned at him and slung his hand over his shoulders. George did the same.

"Harry Potter! Such an honour to meet you! Finally! I thought we'd never get to see your charming face until after term starts!"

Harry wasn't in the mood for jokes (he never was, really) but the twins were part of the tiny group of people that Harry let to torment him in the name of social interaction. So he simply sighed.

"Whoa! Are you clones?! I know two brothers who look almost exactly like each other. Except, the taller one's younger. Or is it the shorter one who's younger? But they aren't twins." Percy said fast, staring at the twins.

"We're identical." Fred said, "My not so bad looking brother is George and I'm Fred."

"Wait! Are you both identical?"

Fred, George and Ron gave Percy unsure and confused looks. Harry raised his eyebrows, "Yes, Percy. They just said that. Identical twins usually look the same as opposed to fraternal ones."

"Uhuh."

Harry used the distraction to slip away.

Out in the backyard, Daniel, Ginny were talking to Annabeth about Hogwarts. Ginny was flinging gnomes across the hedge while Annabeth seemed to have a reluctant fascination with the creatures. Daniel was sitting on the grass talking at warp speed about transfiguration and the teachers.

"So you must know a lot of magic." Annabeth said and Ginny said, "Mhhm," as she grabbed a small gnome by its neck. She flipped the creature in the air with a firm grip on its ankles and released it. The gnome let out squeaks and screeches as it flew over the hedge and the old stump a few yards ahead.

"Wanna try?" Ginny asked the blonde. "It relieves tension."

"Is that the reason why it's your favourite activity?" Harry asked. He couldn't help it. Ginny was amusing when steam rose from her ears.

She gave him a glare but Daniel interrupted. "Harry, come on! You gave me a heart attack! Don't sneak up on people like that!"

"I was standing here for a while. It's not my fault if you are unobservant to your own surroundings."

"What DJ meant was that people do not notice if someone appears right next to them as silently as a ghost. Of course, in your case, I know that you like scaring people." Ginny said casually.

"Like you?" Harry retorted.

Ginny sneered at him, "Not as much as you."

"I see you get along well." Annabeth muttered.

Daniel snorted. "You should see them during a quidditch match! Speaking of which, did you know the World Cup's being held in England this year?"

Harry nodded as he watched the next couple of gnomes fly away from them. Ginny could aim well as each and every little creature hit the stump before wobbling away.

There was a scream from inside. It sounded a little high pitch but Harry recognized the voice. Everyone ran inside to see Percy rushing out and crashing into Harry headlong.

"Damn it! Percy!"

"_There's a head in the fireplace_!"

"Don't worry, someone's just floo-calling." Ginny said calmly and went back into the kitchen. Cinders were falling like black snow on the floor and there certainly was a familiar face in the hearth.

"Hello Sirius."

Annabeth seemed to have frozen next to Harry but he let her drink in the sight before explaining, "It doesn't really hurt him. He's my Godfather, Sirius Black."

"But… how…"

"It's magic." Ginny said, snatching one of the left over bread rolls from the basket on the table.

Mrs. Weasely came in from one of the upper floors and stopped at the sight of eight teenagers in the kitchen staring at Sirius.

"Oh! Finally, we were getting worried!" Mrs. Weasely said, hurriedly rubbing her wet hands in her apron.

"Just her." George mouthed to the man in the firplace.

Sirius grinned. It must have looked strange to Percy and Annabeth because they backed away towards the doorway while Harry asked, "Did you reach London? Or –"

"Don't worry, I did. I'll be arriving in half-an-hour tops. We have to get our luggage checked and go through security before stopping at St. Mungo's for, I hope to Merlin, the last time. I've had enough of hospitals. We'll talk more about what's happening there, but as long as it's not serious, I think you can relax."

Then he grinned brightly, "Get it? Serious?"

Harry sighed again. He was never going to use that word ever again. The joke had gotten so old that it wasn't even a joke. Not even Daniel cracked a smile.

Percy on the other hand, chuckled but then immediately covered his mouth as everyone turned to him.

"Um… Sirius. These are our new friends, Percy and Annabeth. And no, it's not too severe a situation. But you're not going to believe it. So come on fast."

Sirius greeted the demigods and after a small chat with Mrs. Weasely, assuring that Remus and he were safe and for the better, he cut off the call.

"So, his… his face really isn't on fire, right?" Percy asked cautiously.

Ron, Daniel, Fred and George did not do anything to muffle their laughter.

"Not if I had anything to do with it." Ginny whispered.

It was probably to herself, but Harry heard her and decided to stay away from her for the sake of what was left of his patience.

* * *

"I might need a Firewhiskey." Sirius murmured only to receive a glare from Mrs. Weasely.

It was just past lunch and Percy had fallen asleep on the couch in the living room after inhaling the food. He had been trying to compete against Ron but lost spectacularly when he had groaned after Ron continued to devour the dessert as Percy couldn't.

Annabeth, Daniel and Harry sat next to Sirius. Mrs. Weasely had been talking with Remus, who was standing by the bookshelf, and had looked over when Sirius said out loud his desire for a drink in front of three teens.

It wasn't as though Harry was unfamiliar with what Firewhiskey was, but he had never seen it let alone tried it. All he had heard from the older students at Hogwarts was that it was stronger than most muggle drinks and it was always safer to have a sobriety potion for the hangover next morning.

Sirius grinned sheepishly at the Weasely matriarch and slumped back to stare at Annabeth.

"No offense, but you don't look too godly. Neither does he."

He jerked his head towards Percy who was cuddling an old cushion. At least he wasn't drooling, yet.

"Yes, well most times, we don't feel godly at all. Almost all the legends are based from facts and you can be sure that there is some version of truth in them. However, I've not come across anything about wizards and witched before." Annabeth said, not in the slightest bit offended.

Sirius nodded and looked at his watch. Harry noticed that it looked brand new and expensive. Sirius was really enjoying the attention and payments from the Ministry.

"You're from New York, right?"

"Long Island, actually. The coast."

"Same difference in time, right? The change is like, what, three hours?"

"Five." Harry and Annabeth corrected at the same time.

"Right, right. All the travelling is messing up my head. So is the Greek stuff. And the food. But the food was messing with me in a good way. It was even better than I remember it, Molly. I didn't think it was possible."

Mrs. Weasely looked a little abashed but thanked him. Remus gave Sirius a meaningful look and the latter gave a boyish smirk.

Though Azkaban had taken away most of the health and look of the actual thirty three years the man was. There was a waxy parlour on his face. It wasn't as bad as it had been when they had first met a few months back. The sun had really done wonders. Sirius seemed to look on the brighter side to events and had taken Annabeth's story without much reluctance.

Harry was about to ask about his last trip, (Sirius had been far too cheerful when they had arrived at the Burrow), when Percy let out a groan and swatted his hands at the air before mumbling and falling asleep again.

Annabeth leaned over and called out, "Percy, come on, wake up."

Percy frowned and then relaxed.

Harry would have reached out to shake him by the shoulder, but the memory of what happened the last time he had been too close to a sleeping Percy, had discouraged him. He had no wish to get hit, even on accident, again.

Daniel got up and leaned over Percy. "I can smell pizza!"

Percy didn't move.

Daniel looked up in shock. "He doesn't like pizza?!"

Harry was pretty sure that Sally would not have let her little boy near any of the 'horrible junk food'. They never had anything more than French fries back in Surrey when they had been younger. He could mentally picture Percy not knowing anything about the 'goodness of teenage hormones being put to use to hog down the planet's nutrionless foods'.

Not that pizza didn't have any nutrients, per se. From what Ron had said, when the Weaselys had decided to go into town and order some new varieties, his pizza had had a lot of tomato.

Tomato was really good.

"I don't think he's had any." Harry said remembering that Daniel had asked him something. The facial response was amusing to Sirius as the man laughed.

Harry inhaled deeply and then said in a loud voice, "Percy, nap time's over!"

Percy let out a half-snore, half-moan and mumbled, "Five more minutes, Mom."

That sent Sirius over the edge. He clutched his stomach as he tried to breath through laughing while Annabeth looked as though she wanted to face-palm.

Daniel grinned at the statement while Remus and Mrs. Weasely looked amused at the situation.

Harry gritted his teeth, leaned over and yanked the cushion from Percy's grip. It worked.

The demigod grumbled unhappily but sat up in an unsteady fashion ready to pass out again. Harry decided to hit him with the small bolster if he would fall asleep.

Luckily, Percy did seem more awake once he saw the people looking at him. Sirius had just caught his breath and Annabeth got up.

She gave Percy a coded look and Percy understood. Harry understood too. She wanted to leave.

"I think I'm ready." Percy said and got up with a yawn.

* * *

With The Burrow's telephone number safely stored away in Percy's jeans pocket (the one that didn't hold a pen/sword), it took then just a few seconds of standing in the lake, water up till the knees, for Percy and Annabeth to disappear into a mist.

* * *

**A little short, but you won't believe my workload. Stya tuned until the next chapter, I will update!**

**Cabba.**


	5. Another Member

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the Harry Potter or Percy Jackson series. Any copyright infringement is unintended. Any reference to other fictional or non-fictional works like books, movies, documentaries and others might occur, although there is no claim established over them. Mentions of real personalities are not considered true. This is pure fan-fiction and is published only for the sake of entertainment.**

**Listening to – 2172**

**Words – Wake Me by Avicii**

* * *

Percy's head reeled a bit. He had travelled through water. With Annabeth. Met Harry. Got to know about wizards. So did Annabeth. Met Harry's crazy 'muggle' family. Met Harry's other magical cousin (who stared a little too much at Annabeth). Met Harr's best friend's (who happened to be related to him through water!) family with Annabeth. Spent more than a day with Harry. And Annabeth.

He blinked and his gaze fell on the picturesque view of the morning ocean spread out in front of him. The sun was not too bright but it was definitely past breakfast according its position.

Percy turned around and grinned. He saw the back row of six of the cabin facing him, a distance off. Each one unique and familiar in the way he loved. Vaguely, he could get the smell of strawberries mixed in the salty scent of the ocean. It made him yawn but he was also excited. It definitely was Camp Half-Blood. He had done it!

"Oh!" A voice squeaked.

Percy looked down and saw a girl in the water. She had wavy black hair which looked like Mom's but the girl's was longer. The girl in the water smiled and put her chin on her palm.

_Naiad_, Flo told Percy. Her lower half was in hidden in the waves and Percy thought he saw a green mermaid tail swishing underneath the water.

"You're back." She said.

Percy nodded slowly. "Well, yeah. H… how long was I gone?"

The Naiad looked a bit unsure, but then she said, "Not a full day. But the search was called off last night. Chiron said that your blonde friend had IM'd him. Everyone was getting worried. By the way, where is the Athena child?"

Percy blinked then he looked around him.

The son of Poseidon and the naiad were alone.

"Oh." He said. Annabeth wasn't here. 'Oh' didn't seem to cover it.

Then the reality of the situation settled on him.

"Not good. Not good! Annabeth!" Percy yelled, spinning a few times in his spot to find a sign of her, hopefully, in the waves. But he couldn't. He had lost her.

"Athena's going to turn me into seaweed!" Percy panicked. Then he turned and ran in the direction of the Big House.

A few demigods were walking around. When they saw him, they voiced out their surprise but Percy ignored them all.

"Percy! Man, where were you?" Adam, son of Aphrodite called out from the Basketball court. Percy hardly looked in his direction.

The Big House, big and sky blue in paint loomed over him, welcoming his frantic form as Percy was starting to become oblivious to everything else that was happening around him. He had lost her.

He saw the camp director and trainer sitting in the living room of the building. There was an ancient fire burning in the fireplace and the head of a tiger growled lowly at him.

"Chiron! Oh gods, I'm in hu-ge trouble!" Percy complained the moment he flew up the stairs and into the room.

Chiron, Percy's cool centaur mentor/friend, looked up from a magazine. He was sitting in his wheelchair, looking like a regular mortal who was actually a 3000 year old hero-trainer.

Percy spotted Mr. D, the Wine god, sitting opposite Chiron. The god ignored Percy's entrance completely. Chiron's expression of relief wavered and he seemed a bit more alert.

"Percy, you're back! But what's wrong? Where's Annabeth?"

"That, " Percy said, panting a little, " is a very good question."

The phone rang. Percy jumped and Mr. D grunted, "Somebody get that."

Chiron gave him a look before leaning forwards and picking up the receiver.

"Yes, this is – " Chiron stopped and frowned. Percy couldn't hear what was being said, but the garbled voice on the other end seemed to be rushing out the words.

After a moment, Chiron looked up at Percy and asked in a tired voice, "You left Annabeth in Britain?"

Percy stared. "Oops?"

The centaur sighed and went back to the phone, occasionally saying, "Yes.", "Oh.", "Ofcourse.", "Can you do that?", "But – "

Percy watched anxiously. He realized that it wasn't Annabeth who Chiron was talking to. The voice on the other end sounded different. Recognizable, but not Annabeth's. May be Harry's? Or Sirius'?

He had left her. But he clearly remembered holding her hands. Just like before, there was definitely a physical contact. He had been thinking hard about Camp. He had been thinking of the way how his body had felt like mist and water combined, flowing through the water, disappearing altogether and reappearing in the river in Surrey Forest before. This had been the same. But maybe he hadn't concentrated hard enough.

He had left her there. Percy sighed. How could he have done that? What if it was a completely different scenario? What if they were running from monsters, came across a lake and Percy had felt confident enough to take them to safety?

Then Annabeth would have been separated from him and would have to fight alone. She'd never forgive him.

"Percy, are you listening?"

"Huh?" Percy jolted out of his reverie and watched as Chiron said something to him. He could hear the words a little dully. As though through a few walls. The voice was faint and the room blurred a little.

He felt faint. Or rather, very tired. Were they the same thing? Percy wasn't sure, but suddenly, he saw the floor rising up to meet his face.

* * *

His head ached and it was because of the horrible voices shouting in his head. He could feel soft bedding underneath him. Either he was in his room, cabin or the infirmary.

The smell of piping hot chocolate chip cookies wafted through the air. There was a small hint of strawberry and oranges mixed into it. It felt like home.

Cookies could have meant he was in his room in New York, but it could also have been ambrosia. But Percy had to stop thinking because he had a pounding ache in his temples and the voices in his head were not helping him at all.

'It's all because of you! You're pathetic and worthless! Nothing!" One voice screamed. It sounded like an older male's tone of anger as though Percy had personally ticked him off.

'You're going to hell! You don't deserve to live!' Another voice shouted from somewhere in the back of his head. This voice was like ice, freezing Percy's veins in his chest. It resembled a young woman's high pitch voice.

"Shut up! Don't you dare say another word to him! Leave him alone, you worthless – " That was Flo. She was the only supportive voice in his mind. She was also the only one he could actually see. For that he was glad.

Nobody else could see her. Nobody else could hear the voices in his head. Percy figured that it wasn't a normal thing. He was quite sure that no other demigod, wizard, witch or mortal had these problems.

Except, may be for a schizophrenic.

But Percy wasn't mad like that, right? He couldn't be. Children of gods, especially. They had other crisis such as possibilities of getting eaten by monsters or getting cursed by immortal beings. Not voices in their heads, unless it was a god.

He felt a cold presence near him and tried to wake up. He was sleeping, that he knew. May be dreaming too. But he had to wake up from the voices who kept trying to kill him with thoughts.

The black vision lightened and when he found his eyelids, he opened them to see a very bright halo of some sort.

Percy blinked. Annabeth's face swam into his gaze.

"Well, Seaweed Brain. You're not taking me mist-travelling again unless our lives are in danger, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear." Percy said and then, with some difficulty, he managed a smile.

Annabeth's stern expression softened a bit and he saw her eyes sparkle. It reminded him of stars. The grey irises weren't as sharp as before. She wasn't as angry as he had thought she'd be.

Percy closed his eyes before opening them again. She was still there. The voices in his head stopped shouting.

Percy pushed himself up and sat gingerly on the mattress. He looked around and saw that he was indeed in the infirmary.

Annabeth sighed and tucked a curl behind her ear. Percy couldn't look away from the action. His fingers itched.

"Well?" Annabeth said. Percy was silent for a while before realizing what she meant.

"Oh… uh, yeah. I'm really sorry for leaving you there. I'll get better at the transporting thing. Next time will be better, I swear."

Annabeth watched him carefully as though trying to read his mind. He hoped she couldn't. What would she think of the voices? Or worse, his thoughts about her?

She didn't blink at all. Percy didn't know how she could do that. Yes, she had a less severe form of ADHD than he did, but it still was there. (Yes, she could still decently take him in a fight even if his reflexes were learnt before her.)

Another moment passed before she seemed satisfied by his sincerity. She nodded.

"Good. I hope so. Now, you've been asleep for hours. If you're hungry, I kept some sandwiches on your nightstand –"

Percy heard no more. His body was in motion and his mind soon caught up with the fact that he was hungry. Ron's mother, Mrs. Weasely, was an excellent cook, but Percy's exertion had him hungry as a wolf.

"I shouldn't be surprised." Annabeth said, frowning at his eating habits. "It's almost four in the morning. I couldn't sleep though. Nobody can. When you're done, we need to go for the emergency meeting in the Big House."

* * *

"Really?! Are you serious? Harry brought you here? How did he do that? With his weird plant thingy? Why didn't he come and meet me? Why –"

"If you'd let me put in a word, you'd know!" Annabeth huffed.

Percy slunk into his chair. The others sniggered. Travis Stoll, head of the Hermes Cabin, muttered, "Whipped."

Percy gave him an offended look. Travis just shrugged.

"Children." Chiron muttered.

The meeting between the heads of all cabins, Chiron and Mr. D was going slowly. Some kept interrupting with lame jokes, some voiced out their incredulities at the newly discovered world that wasn't very new as it was around for nearly three millennia; as old as the gods. The fact that both societies had existed without the other knowing was a big deal. Even Chiron sounded a little wary. Mr. D was quiet throughout the entire episode.

"Life is everywhere. And, as Harry put it, plant is life. And the plants love him. So they helped him to help me." Annabeth said as though the explanation was so simple and explanatory in itself.

"That explains so much." Will Solace, leader of the Apollo Cabin, commented.

"Actually, it does!" Katie Gardner interrupted. She sounded excited.

"A wizard with the powers of plant life! Can you imagine the possibilities?! He can help solve the rift between man and nature! He's the bridge between worlds of the uncontrollable! He can hopefully even find the Lord of the Wild, Pan!"

The table caught on. Silena Beaurgarde and Charles Beckendorf whispered appreciatively under their breaths. Annabeth sat up straight.

Percy let out a breathe. Okay, he had never thought about Harry like that. Sure the guy was weird and smart and stuff, but solve world problems…?

Well, Harry definitely had the brains for it.

"If you're done fan-girling, Gardner." Travis stated, he didn't sound happy. "I still think we should go back to the beginning. As in, where the Hades did these wizards come from in the first place?!"

Everyone turned to Mr. D. The god rolled his eyes.

"Don't look at me. Not even Zeus had any idea. He sent Artemis and Apollo to question Hecate because Athena suspects her the most, but then again, Demeter and Hades are also on the list and so am I. So I can't attend any of the meetings unless they find out the truth. Which means I'm stuck here. You think you have it bad? I actually have to put up with you whiners."

Chiron nodded and shifted his wheel chair, "Thank you for your input, Mr. D. Will you be keeping us posted with any news you hear on the matter?"

The god grunted. Hopefully, it meant 'yes.'

"Until then, Percy, can we trust your friend?"

Percy looked up. He saw everyone staring at him.

"Who?"

Annabeth sighed, "He's talking about Harry, Seaweed Brain."

Percy felt a little insulted on Harry's behalf, "How can you even ask something like that? He's my brother!"

"_What?!"_ Half the table shouted.

Suddenly, the doors banged open and Michael Yew and Conner Stoll rushed in, breathing hard.

"You won't believe it… but… there's someone unconscious near Thalia's pine tree underneath the Golden Fleece!"

* * *

**Next update – next year. Stay tuned.**

**Cabba.**


	6. Same Old Harry

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the Harry Potter or Percy Jackson series. Any copyright infringement is unintended. Any reference to other fictional or non-fictional works like books, movies, documentaries and others might occur, although there is no claim established over them. Mentions of real personalities are not considered true. This is pure fan-fiction and is published only for the sake of entertainment.**

**Thanks for all the response. Made my week! Have a great New Year!**

**Listening to – Don't Let Me Go by Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger.**

**Words – 3652**

* * *

The moment Thalia, daughter of Zeus, fell asleep in the infirmary, Annabeth went into a tirade. Her words burst out as though they had been festering in her for weeks. She mixed them with a few Greek curses and that was when Chiron stopped her.

"Annabeth, dear, I think you need some rest. Don't protest, please go back to your cabin."

Annabeth stared at him in shock. Then she said, "Chiron, what makes you think I want to sleep? Thalia's here! I haven't seen her in six years! I thought I'd never see her again! She's here, she's safe! She's alive! She's –"

"Hey, that's how I felt about seeing Harry after six years!" Percy interrupted.

Annabeth leveled him with a _Don't-interrupt-my-moment-with-that-annoying-wizard_ glare.

Percy kept quiet as he watched her argue with Chiron. He had been telling the truth. It was just how he felt about Harry.

It was strange. The day after meeting his long-lost brother, Annabeth gets to meet her long-lost best friend who was like an older sister to her.

_There's no such thing as coincidences._

Percy ignored Flo. He knew that. May be Thalia had something to do with Harry and his wizard stuff.

Yeah right.

Or maybe it was just because of the Golden Fleece. It had healed the poison and her. It was just plain circumstantial happenings that it happened when Percy felt the urge to water travel. Or was it mist-travel?

Percy's bracelet on his left arm started to grow cold. He scratched the skin through his shirt absentmindedly.

The bracelet reminded him of Harry. He had one just like Percy. There was no escaping coincidence there. Just a mysterious piece of charm branded to their skins which worked in strange ways.

Percy stopped his track of thoughts when he remembered someone else who had a bracelet like this.

Mom!

She too had this but there was something even more important. She didn't know that Percy and Harry had met. She didn't know anything.

Percy let out a sharp breath. For a second, he didn't know what to do.

He watched as Chiron tried to lead Annabeth out of the Big House. Silena, Beckedorf, Travis and Conner where in the conference room talking about Thalia's arrival. Percy spotted the phone on the ping-pong table.

He grinned as he ran towards it, startling the other four demi-gods with his enthusiasm.

"Percy? Wha –"

"One sec." Percy said, lifting the receiver and checking the buttons on the machine.

_Last call list, where is it? Here!_

The number which appeared on top of the short list definitely did not look familiar. It had to be from the Weaselys' house. They had called before to inform that Harry had somehow been able to focus enough to take Annabeth to Long Island Beach.

So, naturally, he'd be calling them this time.

He pressed the green button and waited on tender hooks for someone to pick up. If Harry was strong enough for another trip, then he'd be able to meet Mom. Percy knew that it would cheer up the cheerless boy.

The ringing was monotonous and was getting on his nerves. He bounced a little on his toes, giving the others a large smile.

"And you guys say I'm hyper." Travis muttered. Silena giggled.

Percy's attention was focused completely on the voice on the other end of the line.

"Harry?!"

"_Percy? What the hell? It's one in the morning!"_

Percy blinked. He'd forgotten the time.

"Uh, yeah. I didn't think about that."

"_Clearly_." Harry voice was filled with irritation, tiredness and slight sarcasm. Percy felt bad.

"Sorry Harry. I really wasn't focused on that. I was just wondering, in the morning, when you're feeling up to it, you think you can drop by here again?"

Harry was silent on the other end for a while and Percy wondered if the line had been cut. Then his voice crackled up again.

"_Do you even know how much power it takes to travel through plants?"_

Percy didn't answer. He had no clue. Harry knew that Percy had no clue. Why was he asking?

"That's a rhetorical question, right?" He asked Harry, hopefully.

Harry's voice took on a tone of surprise, "_You know what 'rhetorical' means_?"

Now he felt a little insulted. Again. Clearly, even Harry, like the rest of the world, kept underestimating him. It dampened his mood.

"Yes. It was my word of the day just before my quest. Mom gave it to me. We replaced weekend riddles with words of the day. You remember, right? My weekend riddles? Mom was running out of them so she changed the activity. I was asking if you were strong enough to travel here again. I think you want to meet her, more than I want you to. Right?"

Percy waited. He heard Harry's intake of breath.

"_I can't go past your Camp's borders. When I helped Annabeth, we reached the edge of the forest. We had to walk for nearly an hour to reach to get to the pine tree. I still can't believe that you have the actual Golden Fleece. I swear it was talking in my head."_

Harry definitely sounded much more energized now. Percy tapped his fingers on the table in the rhythm of Dashing through the Snow.

"_But I'm definitely stronger than you_."

Percy rolled his eyes. Harry's modesty hadn't developed at all.

"_So, yes. I think I'll be reaching the outskirts of your Camp, after breakfast_."

Percy stopped. He could feel his lips turn up again. "You will? That's great! Mom will be so… so happy! No! That's not the right word. She'll be… be…"

"_Ecstatic?"_

"What does that mean?"

"_Joyful. Extremely elated_."

"And that's my word of the day! Thanks Harry! Wait, you'll be reaching after breakfast time, here or there?"

"_I'll be reaching there after breakfast here. Which means I'll have an apple now and will leave in two hours. It'll be eight there. I'm guessing you have early breakfasts?"_

"Yeah. How do you know that?"

"_I'm Harry Potter. I know stuff. You should know that I'm not tired. I was reading up my Greek Myths. You need to tell me later how much of everything is actually true and what's not_."

Percy chuckled. Same old Harry.

"Sure. But, hey. The journey first time around must have worn you out, right? No one's infallible. You can come by a little later –"

"_After breakfast. Wait for me outside the border. Or I'll go by myself. I need to have a nice long conversation with Sally_."

Percy frowned. Harry only ever referred to their mother as 'Sally' when he was in a mood. But never to her face. He had enough respect for that. He knew that she always loved it when he called her 'Mum.' Percy knew that Harry would still hold a subtle grudge against them for leaving him with the Dursleys. His 'family.' Who, by the way, owned a rifle which could have put a bullet in him anytime he turned his back.

That'd make anyone sore.

"Okay. Get enough rest, though. Bye."

"Hmm."

Harry cut the call and Percy sighed as he lowered the receiver.

Harry really hadn't changed. It would be almost as though he had never missed any part of his life.

Except the facts that Harry was a wizard, his fame(DJ had given him and Annabeth a five-minute explanation of the guy with the weird name and no nose) his family, his school (Hogwarts was the most original name Percy had ever heard!)

Oh and Harry was fourteen. August had already begun. Gods, Percy still had seventeen more days till he was fourteen! So. Not. Fair.

"You know? I haven't realized it before, but your accent isn't all that New York."

Percy turned to see Silena watching him. The others had left, but she was still seated in her chair. She had a smile playing on her lips. Her dark blue eyes filled with amusement, she leaned forwards and whispered, "Was that your wizard brother?"

Percy felt a little uncomfortable looking at her. She was much older and had really never talked to him before his second summer at Camp, the current one.

She really was a daughter of Aphrodite. She had silky looking blackish-brown tresses and a perfect touch of make-up. Percy stared at her until Flo shouted, '_Wake up_!'

"Huh!"

Silena blinked.

Percy shook his head and felt his face heat up. The demigoddess laughed.

"You really are cute, you know."

Percy let out a garbled syllable and fled the room. He could almost hear her smirking.

* * *

He shouldered his bag, fingers closed around his trusty sword. He kept clicking it, playing with the different modes. Pen. Sword. Pen. Sword. Pen.

"You're leaving? I thought you'd stay for a few more weeks."

Annabeth had walked up to the hill to bid him good-bye. Honestly, Percy was planning to come back after Harry left, but it depended on how the meeting would go. Anyway, it was clear that the blonde wanted to spend time with the newly resurrected daughter of Zeus. Percy had tried not to feel jealous, but really. Annabeth usually spent the hour after breakfast helping Percy with his Greek grammar. She had immediately changed plans when she came to know of Percy showing Harry his house after breakfast.

For some reason, Percy really didn't like that.

He shifted his legs, unable to stay still. "Yeah. It depends on Harry, though. If he stays here for a few days, then I'll be with him and my mom. I think I'll come back after he leaves for England."

Annabeth nodded slowly. She rubbed her fingers together like she wanted to say something else but then another person came running up the hill.

Percy turned, surprised. He hadn't thought that Thalia would be strong enough to be up and about, but it seems as though Harry's not the only one to have extended stamina.

"You're going? Will Solace says that your brother is a magic dude for plants."

Percy snickered. Harry wouldn't have liked to hear that. Good thing he wasn't here yet.

Thalia gave Annabeth a smile as though they were sharing an inside joke. Maybe they were. The two of them had spent months together along with Luke while on the run from their families and monsters. Before meeting Grover, the three of them were a tight pack. And then everything was gone when the rogue Cyclops had struck.

Thalia should have looked older. She had been twelve when she had been turned into a pine tree. Six years later, she looked fifteen. And twelve plus six was definitely not fifteen.

Apparently, staying as a tree had actually healed her extremely slowly. If it hadn't been for the fleece, Thalia might have awakened decades later with no familiar face to go by except for possibly Grover (satyrs aged slower than demigods and mortals.)

But of course. Another child of the Big Three, older than Percy, did not mean good news all around.

"Your fleece is rather annoying." A different voice spoke up.

Percy, Annabeth and Thalia watched as the newcomer trekked upwards the hill, paying no attention to the demigods.

Harry's eyes were focused on the golden fleece which hung like a bath towel from one of the lower branches of the pine tree.

Percy grinned at the entrance. Harry could always sneak up on people, no matter the scene. Clearly, Annabeth and Thalia looked a little surprised on seeing him.

Harry watched the fleece with a frown before turning to the daughter of Zeus.

"You're the tree girl." He intoned.

Thalia didn't blink as she replied without hesitation, "And you're the flower boy."

"Wait!" Annabeth said. She stared at the bespectacled boy. "How do you know about her?"

Harry looked affronted, "I am a plant boy, actually. I've been focusing on this forest for the past full hour from Britain. So yes, I could almost hear the fleece boasting about its power. It was irritating when it kept up the talk like a broken record. Besides, the magic around your camp is literally nature wilderness. I speak the language. So, yes. When someone if reborn from a tree, I get to know of it, even if a certain fleece isn't shouting in my head."

Harry gave the fleece a glare as though it were a living being. Thalia looked even more wary of Harry and Annabeth shot him her daughter-of-Athena glare. (The one, Percy just always barely survived.)

Harry didn't seem perturbed at all. He simply stuck his hands into his jeans pockets and leaned against one of the trees. Percy saw how his eyes flashed through his glasses daring the girls to fire off questions about his nature omniscience.

"You know something, Harry?" Percy asked, passing through the wards and walking down the hill. "You really haven't changed."

* * *

They had to walk a while on the lone road until a slow, rickety truck stopped and let the boys hitchhike to the city. The driver was an old, energetic woman who was delivering shipping equipment to the docks. But she was quite ready to drop them off after entering the city lines.

Harry and Percy sat between the barrels of coarse ropes in the open back and the truck sputtered and shook as it started. Once they were on their way, they felt better, with the wind hitting their faces. The lady, driving, was quite the talker.

"Say, aren't you two a bit young to be walking around like that? What if you got mugged or worse? In times like these you can never be too careful. Like my Jim always says, 'Gota havva gun, or gonna be dead.' Terrible influence on the neighbours kids, mind ya. But of course, he wouldn't mouth off on his little old Mercy, now would he? I keep telling him, 'Calm down, or you'll bring the roof down!' And then, he'd go up yellin' and screamin'. Say, where are you two 'uns headed anyway?"

Percy leaned in and spoke, "NY city. Just popping in for a visit. You know, personal stuff."

Mercy nodded, "Hmm. Say, you haven't told me your names. Now that's rather uncommunicative off you. The drive's gonna take a while, so let's get acquainted and stuff! You're not really talkative, are ya? Quiet ones are usually the most troublesome, but you both look pretty decent to me. You know? You haven't asked me who I am, either!"

"What's your name, Mercy?" Harry asked dryly.

"Mercedes Bennett. Now, young man, I know a tone when I hear one; what's got your shorts in a twist? It's your teenage troubles, right? Hormones stepping in? Or is it girls? It's always girls, ain't it?"

Percy tried to muffle his laugh. Harry gave him a look before saying, "I like the silence. We don't always need words."

"Oh, you live by your philosophy, I'll live by mine. At my age, people always wish that they had done everything in their bucket lists and whatnot. Of course, my dream is to go roll a giant corn cob down the Great Wall of China. Saw it in a dream once. Dreams are strange. You ever see stuff like that when you sleep?"

Percy sighed and rested his head against the side of the truck, "I see really strange things. You do not want to know. "

"Well, many do. It's all about how we think and see the world. And what about you Mr. Words-aren't-needed?"

"I don't dream."

"Say, you don't have to be so rude. Just say that you're not comfortable to share some stuff."

"Are we in a therapy class?"

"Well, you're definitely Captain Sunshine, aren't you?"

* * *

Mercy and Percy kept chatting along the way until they reached a highway and then onto the city limits.

She dropped them off at a slightly deserted turn off yelling something about 'final destinations'. Percy felt sad to see her go. She had been good company. Harry had been quiet throughout most of the journey but had sometimes given his input on her comments just to not let her feel down. See, he wasn't as mean as people thought him to be.

"Where to now, monkey?" Harry said.

Percy sighed. He had once almost dozed out at listening to Mercy's chattering and had ended napping for ten minutes on Harry's shoulder. The older boy had said that it was as though Percy had mistaken him for a cliff and was trying to 'climb' him.

Flashbacks.

"Well, we live in Upper East Side, now. I have enough dough for a cab. So let's hunt one down."

"Hunt?"

"New York's the concrete jungle of the world. The Big Apple. The Manhattan Island. The –"

"Yeah, got it."

It took a while, but Percy was finally able to flag down one of the yellow cars with his taxi whistle. He'd been perfecting it for years. It was almost as good as mom's now.

"You nervous?" Percy asked as he watched Harry sit stiffly in his spot. His shoulders were unmoving, his eyes fixed at the back of the driver's head rest. Percy wasn't even sure if he were breathing.

"I'm just not sure what exactly to say. I mean, I've been rehearsing my words for months, but now it seems to have leaked out. I really don't know what's wrong."

Harry sighed and then hesitated before continuing, "I'm not very happy with her, Percy. I think that's obvious. But I can't be angry with her, either. I didn't support her decision then. I don't support it now. But I can't find it in me to fault her. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

Percy thought over the words. The only times he had ever seen Harry uncertain were when it concerned their mother. Maybe it was because she had raised them. Or maybe it was she was the first adult Harry ever had any respect or love for.

"I know she won't blame you if you were angry with her. She's been anxious too. She told me that if her book reading pays off, she'd get a ticket to go see you. Just to explain, but still. Go easy on her. She's missed you like you wouldn't know."

Harry frowned at nothing in particular, "I do know."

They were quiet until they reached the apartment. Percy paid the driver and got out watching Harry fidgeting with his cap. Percy hadn't noticed that. It was the old Louis&Sons resort cap. The words had faded a bit, but the worn out cap seemed to comfort Harry.

Percy gave him a pat across his shoulder before leading him inside.

"Do you wanna surprise her? I have a spare key." Percy murmured. Harry looked alarmed at the prospect, but Percy was already opening the door.

"Mom!" Percy called out.

The apartment looked a bit cleaner than before Percy had left for his quest. The place was cozy just as he had remembered it. There was a soft smell of baking cookies which brought a wide smile to Percy's face. It was as if she knew that her boys were coming home.

Harry had stopped at the doorway. Percy could see him taking in deep breaths of the smell of home.

"I'm here." His mother called. Percy shut the door and jogged towards the kitchen.

Mom was placing a tray of a fresh batch of her specialities on the platform. Her fish attached mittens were of great use for her hands and she turned around to smile at her younger son.

"Percy, Annabeth called to tell me you were on your way with a surprise. Is it Tyson? But you said that your father called him –"

"It's not Tyson, Mom. He's in dad's underwater castle. This is something we've been waiting for a long while. Look who's here."

Percy backed towards the edge of the sofa by the wall as his mother walked into the living room, confused.

She stopped when she saw Harry. Her mittens were still on one of her hands. She had frozen in the action of removing them.

The wizard looked back at her with a high energy of nervousness and hidden excitement. He had stopped fiddling with his cap.

Percy watched the scenario like a soap-opera of their lives. The long lost boy. The return of the prodigal son.

"Hi Mum." Harry said finally. He took one step forward.

That broke the ice. Their mother's face split into a wide grin as she spread her arms, "Pumpkin!"

The steaming mittens flew off her palms and nearly smacked Percy in the face. He yelled as he was falling backwards, toppling half-way on the other side of the couch.

* * *

...

Meanwhile, Sally strode forwards and engulfed Harry in a hug. She was still taller than him and it took him a belated two seconds to respond to the physical contact.

She kissed him on his forehead. "You're back."

Her whisper was filled with a choking sensation as if n the inside, she really couldn't believe that he was here. When she had seen him standing there, it wasn't his strange scar or mad hair or sharp eyes or glasses or black clothes or rigid posture that had given him away. It was all of them at once. The way he had once stood in front of her when he was six, feeling sorry for dragging Percy away from school for nearly half a day doing Gods knew what.

The guilt in his stance, the awkwardness in his tension and the hesitance in his face._ He_ felt ashamed.

It made her want to cry.

She kissed him again and chanted, "My sweet little baby boy."

Percy muffled voice came from behind the couch. Sally and Harry turned to stare at his legs sticking out upwards. "What about your other sweet little baby boy?"

* * *

**Stay tuned for the next chapter!**

**Cabba.**


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